Search the Community

Am sharing some ICE tuning experiences here for general discussion. Comments are welcomed. 1. Amp gain matching not optimized to harness the full potential of the source, amp and drivers. The advent of advanced DSP today allows users more flexibility and control in sound reproduction. However, poor understanding of and the reliance on instruments to achieve balance and tonality, short of human ears to fine-tune, often leads to boring sound reproduction. In one use case, the Helix DSP source (volume) was maximised but there was utter lack of dynamics and resolution. It turned out that the gains on amplifiers were very conservatively tuned and did not match the source output. 2. Not optimizing the crossover points and the slopes to maximize the full potential of the drivers. The academic and conservative use of crossover points and slopes very often reproduce defined sound stage and neat presentation. However, such practices also generally produce less engaging music. While the overall presentation is neat, it became less realistic and doesn’t engage the listener over a period of time. Do use tech spec of the speakers as reference and in doing so, attempt to fully exploit the bandwidth in which the drivers are capable of reproducing. This allows the full potential of the sound system to be presented. 3. Generally, the presentation of soundstage in some cars is confined BETWEEN the speakers rather than OUTSIDE the speakers. This may sound normal to some of us, especially when most tuning today is geared towards achieving certain competition guidelines as benchmark. However, the overall spirit of sound reproduction becomes artificial and confined to a certain space. The goal of sound reproduction should be that of achieving as wide a sound stage as possible without losing the focus. Sound should appear to come from everywhere other than the speakers themselves. Best is that we can tune the soundstage to the extent that the speakers are “transparent”. In my opinion, soundstage should never be defined or limited by the size of the car windscreen and the depth of the car bonnet. The objective is to make your car cabin THE space in which the recording is made.

Hi... I'm abit of a noob when it comes to car audio systems. I'm considering getting a plug and play DSP with Amplifier to complement the factory headunit. My factory sound system has a 6 channel 180w amplifier with 10 speakers. Can I connect the factory unit via a plug and play ISO harness to the aftermarket DSP + Amplifier (4 channel input, 6 channel amplifier and 8 channel DSP) since the factory Amplifier is 6 channels but the DSP only has 4 Channel high line inputs via the ISO harness. I want to enhance the audio quality without doing a major overhaul of the factory sound system. Any feedback would be great. Thanks.

Have just installed a 4-channel active sound system with DSP. Noticed that whenever I play Spotify music via bluetooth connection to the DSP, there is a hissing/static noise in the background, especially when at the points where there's silence or start of the music piece. However, when I plug my phone directly to the head unit, the hissing/static noise disappears. Using Android phone currently, but have the same results when trying out using my wife's iPhone. Have gone back to the audio shop a couple of times and they have adjusted the DSP gains down, but still can hear the hissing/static sound. They don't seem to be able to resolve the issue so far. One of their staff said that it could be due to the DSP being an entry level one, which I'm not convinced. Does anyone know how to resolve, or any recommendations of an experience ICE workshop that can solve this issue?

Hi Experts this may have crop up many time but i need some advice here. My current setup is a semi-passive 3 way speaker for the front and coaxial for the rear back speakers. I have an amplifier driving all of them togther with an 8 channel processor. Was wondering if upgrading the back speakers to component would have a significant difference to the surround sound, According to articles on the web it mentioned that you should not use component for the back as it may affect the sound stage and imagining of the sound as the back speakers are more like a filler or support for the front speakers. However i believe it is under the assumption that there is no dsp. Having a dsp should be able to solve that issue? Your thoughts guys, component or to stay as coaxial. Please healthy discussion please, I believe we are here to learn and share knowledge. Cheers

One of the greatest challenges with integrating car audio products into your car in the quest to replicate a true concert experience is the placement of speakers, interior trim materials, cabin acoustics and road noise. While installation and sound deadening will eliminate some of these issues, it is necessary to use dedicated processors and digital interfaces to correct the fundamental issues. For those who want the most out of their car audio system, a digital signal processor can help. After some slight adjustments, your system will sound like it has been professionally tuned and optimised. There have been rumours that if your speakers are good enough, you won't require a processor. Unfortunately, this isn't the case because it's the environment that creates the need for a processor, not the speakers. Digital signal processors (DSP) Most Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) factory fitted stereo systems are underwhelming in terms of quality sound. Well, they may have convenience features like iPod inputs, Bluetooth hands-free and steering wheel controls but they lack the ability to fine tune audio performance as well as add extra amplification. Most OEM stereos are also designed to compensate for low quality speakers, which is accomplished by artificially manipulating the frequency profile. When inferior original equipment speakers are replaced with high quality aftermarket units, this manipulation is often very easy to pick up on and if an amp is also installed, the problem will only get worse. That's where a DSP can come to the rescue. There are a number of uses for DSPs, but one of the most remarkable is to fix problems that have been noticed with OEM stereos. The DSP sits between the head unit and the amp, and it can literally undo the factory unit's problems. Some DSPs even have custom profiles that can be downloaded from the Internet, which will automatically fix the pre-processing issue and improve the overall listening experience by finetuning the head unit to suit the interior of the specific vehicle. Audison has released a number of digital components that make it not only easy to get great sound from factory sound systems, but also allow for a complete digital connection from processors to amplifiers. One of them is the Audison bit Ten - a DSP that will be equally at home in a modest system or a full-blown competition car audio system. Audison bit Ten The bit Ten is a multi-function DSP featuring analogue input, capable of transforming an OEM or aftermarket system into a high performance system. This processor comes with a 32 bit, 147 MHz clock speed Cirrus Logic DSP. It is a special DSP, ensuring high integration, where the main processing functions are implemented in optimised and pre-configured blocks, providing the ability to reduce the processing resources, thus ensuring top level performance. The architecture is completed with 24 bit analogue to digital (A/D) and digital to analogue (D/A) converters, as well as a powerful microcontroller to manage, supervise and connect the system to a computer. During the installation phase, where conversion of the analogue signal into a digital one is done, the bit Ten automatically reconstructs a digital full-bandwidth stereo signal and de-equalises the frequency response and, if necessary, reconstructs the central and subwoofer channels. Users can also configure the output mode of each channel relative to the installed system. bit Ten and its advantages Audison truly sets the level when it comes to getting great sound quality in your vehicle, and with the bit Ten, they have designed a product that allows anybody to upgrade their system, no matter what vehicle they have. All of the operations on the bit Ten, from setting the parameters of each input single channel, setting the delays according to the listening position to adjusting crossovers and equalisers for each of the five output channels can be managed with or without a computer. The other great advantage of the bit Ten is that you can retain your factory fitted head unit, which is often heavily integrated with other climate and vehicle controls. The bit Ten uses advanced processors to digitally correct factory speaker placement and frequency response, providing a great one-stop solution with minimal component replacement. The bit Ten boasts a modern and flexible platform, making it possible to stay current with technological evolution.The firmware, based upon Flash memory, can be updated at any time without having to disassemble the device from the system. And to make things even better, the bit Ten has a built in AUX input, allowing you to plug in an MP3 player, or any other audio device, so if your car doesn't have an input, the bit Ten will take care of it. The bit Ten also allows for a hands-free kit and offers an audio mute as standard as well. Having amazing sound really has just got easy, thanks to this little box of tricks. Why Audison? With 34 years of experience in the audio industry, Audison is a renowned name in the audio industry. Since 1979, the founders of Audison have fuelled a long lasting passion for high quality sound, continuing to design and build tools which can produce the perfect sound. In addition, they design and select the materials, experiment and listen to the results time and time again, allowing only their emotions to let them recognise when the product was complete. Since its inception, Audison presents its products to the market only after they have fully met the requirements of their creators to ensure that the highest quality is delivered. More impressively, Audison has many awards and accolades to its name such as the European Imaging and Sound Association (EISA) Award, the Innovations Design and Engineering Award and many others. In Singapore, In-phone Marketing (Asia) Pte Ltd is the official distributor for the Audison bit Ten. They are located at 130 Joo Seng Road #05-05 Olivine Building Singapore 368357. For more information, please call 63822262.